The Philadelphia Phillies have opened up a healthy lead in the National League East thanks to their rival, the New York Mets, losing their past seven contests. New York is now fighting for its playoff lives down the final 40-game stretch of the season. For Philadelphia, their 19-game over .500 record will almost certainly be good enough to see them playing October baseball.
After addressing their reliever group during MLB’s trade deadline season, the Phillies now have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, and a three-headed monster at the top of the rotation leads it.
Christopher Sanchez’s Breakout Phillies Season
Before the 2024 season, the Philadelphia Phillies locked down Christopher Sánchez to a four-year, $22.5 million deal, which looks like one of baseball’s best contracts. Sánchez was named an All-Star in 2024 and finished the season posting a 3.32 ERA over 181.2 innings and 31 starts. How has he followed up on that 2024 breakout campaign? Over 23 starts this season and 144.2 innings, he has a 2.36 ERA and 151 strikeouts.
Christopher Sánchez’s K/9 has also taken a big jump this season, going from 7.6 last year to 9.4 this season. Unless he has an epic collapse over his last handful of starts, Sánchez will receive some CY Young love and is even predicted to outshine his ace teammate, Zack Wheeler.
Bleacher Report’s Tim Kelly recently ran a predictions piece for the remainder of the season, and believes that Christopher Sánchez will finish above Zack Wheeler in the Cy Young race:
“Logan Webb of the San Francisco Giants and Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers deserve a mention, but if anyone is going to catch Skenes, it might be one of the two aces on the Philadelphia PhilliesâZack Wheeler and Cristopher Sánchez,” Kelly wrote.
“… Meanwhile, Sánchez was about as big of an All-Star snub as there was. He’s made up for it by throwing eight or more innings in two of his first three starts in the second half, including a complete game against the Boston Red Sox on July 22. Sánchez has taken over the lead in Baseball Reference’s calculation of WAR, and is in the top five among NL starters in ERA, FIP, HR/9, quality starts and innings pitched.”
“The guess here is that Skenes will win the NL Cy Young. But it may very well be Sánchez who earns the second-place finish.”
Shaping Up the NL Cy Young Race
Now it’s important to mention that the Pirates’ Paul Skenes is likely to win the award for the incredible season he is having, but the Phillies’ top arms in Sánchez and Zack Wheeler are likely second and third. Wheeler is having another phenomenal season with two top-two NL CY Young finishes.Â
Over 22 starts and 138.2 innings, Wheeler has posted a 2.68 ERA and 182 strikeouts. That strikeout mark is suitable for the best in the National League. Wheeler’s WHIP is also a microscopic 0.917, and his K/9 is over 11. He completely dominates hitters when he is on, as he also rarely walks them.
Either pitcher could finish second in the Cy Young race, but it can not be understated how well Christopher Sánchez has been this year, as he is easily the best “second option” in a rotation and is under one of the most team-friendly deals in baseball.
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